


Sofa

by Infiniteleft



Category: Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Angst, Drinking, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Getting Together, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Romance, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 00:48:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28644744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Infiniteleft/pseuds/Infiniteleft
Summary: It takes them some time to figure things out. The one constant, Dia realizes, is that crusty old sofa she had during college.And then the one time on Yohane's.
Relationships: Kurosawa Dia/Tsushima Yoshiko
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	1. Feelings

"I really don't know what to say."

Those were undoubtedly not the words Yohane wanted to hear, but Dia didn't have anything else to offer. When they'd headed back to her apartment for the evening, the last thing she expected to get was a confession. A _romantic_ confession. She thought the only thing to happen would be another round of drinks and reminiscing.

Evidently, it hadn't been what Yohane expected either, given how botched the whole thing was. Dia was thankful for the whiskey she had in her glass, an excuse for her jumbled thoughts and heated face. It bought her time as she took a sip.

"I… I truly am flattered by your… ah… your attention," Dia began, struggling to read her own thoughts. What did feelings matter? Her duties came first, and she knew that being distracted by something so frivolous as a crush was useless. That didn't mean she wanted to hurt Yohane, though…

Yohane seemed to know what was coming. She could see it in the way her face twisted into a painful smile, her reddened and teary eyes boring a hole into Dia's wavering heart. "But you don't have the time for it. I get it," her voice cracked, as strong as Yohane tried to keep it, feeding the guilt lying in Dia's chest, "I do. I dunno what I was thinking."

Ah, fuck. So much for not hurting her. Before Dia could open her foolish, _foolish_ mouth, her friend already muttered an apology, excusing herself to Dia's office to get some sleep. As much as she wanted to follow her, Dia stayed behind in the kitchenette, staring down her glass and wondering what it would've been like if she said yes.

When she woke up the next day, she was lying on the sofa with a blanket tossed over her. Yohane's things were gone. All she left was a text message that didn't make any mention of what had happened.

> 'was a blast seeing u again my assistnt. the great yohane must go where she is beckond n little riri is next on the tour'

She doesn't reply. What can she say?


	2. Duty

"How're you, really?"

Six month passed since Dia last saw Yohane. To her relief, the Incident™ hadn't driven a wedge between them. She'd spent two nights fearing the loss of their friendship, when Yohane broke the silence by sending her pictures of her and Riko's lunch.

That didn't meant things were any easier, especially not when she showed up at her door without warning. Against her better judgement, she brought out the spirits.

Yohane was still waiting for an answer. The dusty blue couch creaked as she leaned back, playing with the ice in her cup. "The great fallen angel's eyes see all, my unholy pupil. It doesn't take much to scry what you are stifling."

"I'm perfectly fine," Dia bit out. "My studies are going well, what on Earth would I be worried about?"

"Burning out. Come on, Dia. We all know what's going on." God, how could Yohane manage to look so… so self-assured while drinking something so vile as absinthe?

She looked away, feeling anger building up under her skin. Calm. Her mother's voice told her to be calm. Letting her breath out through her nose, Dia shook her head. "I don't know where you keep getting these ideas."

"Dia. You called Mari at 2AM and asked her how she could live with it." Yohane leaned forward, and there was worry in her eyes. Just like that, Dia's blood turned to ice. What could she say?

"I…"

"Look, I know I'm probably one of the last people to tell you about responsibilities and stuff. But look at you," she continued, as if she knew Dia couldn't form a retort, "you're not even returning Ruby's calls anymore."

What a card to play. Nothing could save her from the guilt that threatened to overwhelm her; not anger, not pride, not indifference, or the drink in her hand. The glass shook when her grip tightened. "You don't know what you're talking about," Dia warned, weakly. An empty threat, and they both knew it.

Yohane sat there with an expression Dia didn't know if she couldn't read, or just didn't want to. "Don't I?"

"No." The AC clicked on, a deafening hum. She was glad for it; it hid how fast her breaths had become. Yohane was so close… too close for comfort. There was nowhere to run.

"I guess you're right." To Dia's surprise, her crush pulled away. Finishing off her mixed sherry with an ease she knew was fake, Yohane explained, "that's something nice about nobody expecting anything from you -- no need to worry about your duties, or whatever bullshit they call it. They don't care enough for that."

"Yohane…"

"I just… I just wish you'd loosen up a little. Do you even have hobbies anymore?" Yohane shot her a glare when Dia opened her mouth. "The koto doesn't count. Your parents made you do it. When was the last time you paid attention to idols? You love them!"

"I don't have time to be wasting on keeping track of the competitions," she shot back, "and you know that."

A sigh. Her friend stands up. "Yeah, and that's the whole point. Look, can you just… do me a favor? Call Ruby."

Dia doesn't look up when the door shuts behind her. Her neighbors wouldn't be home yet -- it was only the early afternoon, after all. In the silence left behind, she cursed herself for her pride, as much as it was the only thing she had left.


	3. Chapter 3

"You're different."

Perhaps not the most ideal way to start an awkward conversation, but Dia would give her points for trying. It's been a long few months since she'd last seen her, unlike the two weeks since Ruby left. Things were different, but she didn't know if she liked them. She nodded.

Yohane fidgeted with the toothpick umbrella in her drink. Its handle snapped in the middle. "It's a good different. Your aura is basically glowing with your growth, strong, effervescent."

"I'm glad you think so," she managed, unsure of how to talk to her friend anymore. She looked off to the side, finding the dingy wallpaper she couldn't even see much easier to bear. "I… still don't quite know what I'm looking for. But it's better. Things are better. And you? I can't say I can read auras." _You're looking awful,_ Dia thought. _What have you done to yourself? What could I not stop you from doing?_

A shrug, and Yohane hid the bright yellow plaything in her hand, dunking back her cocktail. "Nothing but the same old tragedy, my beloved pupil. The great Yohane finds new lows to traverse, seeking out new underlings to enthrall."

_The same old, is it…?_ "I think you've said more than you meant to, Yohane."

"It happens. Such is the unfortunate way of life. Say, Dia, do you think I talk too much?"

"I think you _drink_ too much," Dia corrected her, tugging the empty glass out of her hand. She slid it off to the side, finally placing her gaze onto the fallen angel. "That's enough for you. I'm not cleaning up any accidents."

Yohane flinched, before laughing strangely. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. You know, I've been… I've been thinking. You know, I think I think too much, too. It's such a weird, unreal place to be, Dia, I think you know, that sometimes you're too much and just not enough. It's so weird to be both. Everything about you is bad."

"Say what now?" Dia cursed her own lack of foresight. She should've known it'd devolve like this, but a pity party wasn't what she was expecting. "Yohane, are you alright?"

"Huh? I'm fine. I'm cool. Everything's… everything's back to normal, right? We're back to normal?"

Dia pressed her lips together, watching Yohane sway on the stool. How pathetic must they be, to be so screwed up they couldn't even get to this point without the alcohol? How could they be okay when talking about anything real felt too vulnerable? Too unsafe?

How had she made it this far without realizing how bad things had become?

"No," she responded, drawing out the word. "No, we're not back to normal. We're going home, and then you're going to talk to me, while sober, about what this is about. Unless you feel like spilling it out in the cab as well."

Ignoring Yohane's protests, she hauled the disgraced queen of hell back to her feet. Dia slung both their bags over her shoulder, pushing her towards the door.

Listening to everything Yohane ended up blurting out on the ride back only confirmed her fears that she should've said something sooner. Too wrapped up in her own fears and drama, she failed to notice that her friend had needed her. So afraid of her own baggage, she left Yohane to drown.

Dia went to sleep that night praying desperately that Yohane could forgive her. She could be here now -- she _would_ be here now. It brought her no comfort, and her dreams that night were tainted by a yawning absence of a name her friends had forgotten.


End file.
